Kim Bong-hwan

Kim Bong-hwan (; 4 July 1939 – before 2002) was a North Korean football forward who played for national team in the 1966 FIFA World Cup. He made at least 41 appearances for the national team, including one World Cup match, and was one of the players to be given the title of Merited Athlete. He also played in North Korea for the club Kikwancha Pyongyang.

Early life Kim was born on 4 July 1939 in Korea, Empire of Japan, in what became North Korea. He played at the club level for Kikwancha Pyongyang (Sometimes called Kigwancha Pyongyang.) In 1962, Kim was chosen as one of the best 40 players from the North Korean leagues, whose membership reportedly consisted of over 250,000, to be considered for the national team. The 40 players were enlisted into the Army as military officers, under the leadership of colonel and coach Myung Rye-hyun, and went under strict training for the next four years in preparation for the cup.

Kim, a forward, was ultimately chosen as one of 22 players for the World Cup team. Kim was the oldest member of the team at 27 years of age. Projected as having little chance of success, the team lost their first match, 3–0 against the Soviet Union, before tying Chile 1–1. In a massive upset, North Korea won 1–0 on a goal by Pak Doo-ik. Kim ended the World Cup with one appearance, playing 90 minutes. After the World Cup, it was rumored that the North Korean squad was imprisoned for celebrating the win over Italy in a bar; however, when interviewed in 2002, several players denied this.

In 2002, the surviving members of the 1966 North Korean World Cup team were interviewed for the documentary film The Game of Their Lives; Kim was deceased by this time.